South Carolina is back home at the Colonial Life Arena on Saturday, a midday tip against Auburn. The Gamecocks (3-4, 1-2) will attempt to break a two-game losing streak after consecutive losses to LSU and Missouri. For the first time since the first three regularly scheduled games of the season, South Carolina will play three games in a row, with no interruptions in the schedule.
GAME INFORMATION
Arena: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)
Broadcast: ESPN2
Game by game: Beth Mowins
Analyst: Jimmy Dykes
Radio: Gamecock Radio Network
In columbia: 107.5 The Game
Game by game: Derek Scott
Analyst: Casey Manning
Sirius: – | XM: 191 | Internet: 962
To watch: App WatchESPN / ESPN
Live Stats: GamecocksOnline.com
Auburn Series: Auburn leads 26-19
In columbia: Carolina leads 11-8
Series Trend: Auburn won two in a row
Last meeting: 80-67 Auburn’s victory on January 22, 2020 in Auburn, Alabama
GAMECOCK NOTES
– Forward Junior Keyshawn Bryant has an average of 22.5 points per game over the past two games. He recorded a career record of 26 at LSU last Saturday, before scoring 19 in Missouri in the midweek clash against the Tigers. Bryant has hit 18 of his last 30 shots from the ground (60 percent) since the LSU contest.
– After defeating 11 in Missouri, junior striker in red shirt Justin Minaya is now averaging 8.1 rebounds per team, which is fourth in the SEC taking action over the weekend. Minaya leads the Gamecocks with 3.29 offensive rebounds per game. This brand is the second at the SEC and 31 nationally.
– The Gamecock defense forced 19 turnovers in Missouri earlier this week in the clash against the Tigers. Carolina is now averaging 16.6 opponents’ rotations per contest this season, which is the fourth in the SEC and the 34th nationally.
– Coach Frank Martin informed the local media on Friday morning that strikers Alanzo Frink and Jalyn McCreary remain on the COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Frink has not played in the last four Gamecocks games, while McCreary has lost the last two.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
– Auburn is 8-7 in the year and 2-5 in SEC competitions. The Tigers started the SEC campaign with four straight losses, followed by straight wins in Georgia and against Kentucky, before suffering a road loss in Arkansas earlier this week.
– Coach Bruce Pearl is in his seventh season leading the Tigers.
– Freshman guard Sharife Cooper steps in with 22.5 points and 8.3 assists per game. Allen Flanigan (13.8), Justin Powell (11.7), Jamal Johnson (10.1) and Jaylin Williams (10.0) also averaged double-digit points.
– In SEC statistics, Auburn is sixth in offensive scoring (76.1 ppg) and third in the three-point field goal defense percentage, keeping opponents with just 29.9 percent beyond the arc. Tigers are in third place in assists per game, 15.0, and also in blocks per game, 5.7.
QUOTES
– “I’m excited to be able to practice and prepare. I thought we did a good workout (Thursday) and I hope we can do another one on (Friday) and go play at home. We haven’t had that opportunity many times as we try discovering the dynamics of this season for this team based on the hand we received, is different from any other season. It is different for me.
“I am very focused on practice, oriented towards improvement and those two things are missing from the chapter we are writing this year. I know that at the end of the day it will help me to be a better basketball coach, but while you are going through this is really confusing because there is nothing in my database that I can reflect on to help me do my job …. We are not yet in full swing, but at least we had the same group of guys together, not including me and (assistant coach) Chuck (Martin), for three practices and two games. ” – Martin from the team going through a week
– “We have no basis now. We are trying to keep everything together with tape while we try to reconfigure who we are defensively. We will have our hands busy, but this is the job in place.” – Martin facing an Auburn team with five players who add on average double digits